DUBLIN'S INTERNATIONAL Financial Services Centre has plummeted from 10th place to 23rd in the latest world competitiveness rankings.

Asian centres leapfrogged the IFSC, which has suffered considerable reputational damage, in the sixth Global Financial Centres Index.

Dublin's rating in the index, which covers the six months to the end of September, remained fairly stable at 613 out of a possible 1,000.

By contrast, all Asian financial centres enjoyed a dramatic rise in ratings during the period. Hong Kong, Singapore, Shenzhen, Shanghai and Beijing are now all ranked ahead of Dublin.

"We're seeing other countries climbing over Dublin," said Prof Michael Mainelli of London think tank Z/Yen, which compiles the index. "It's very much the rise of Asia."

The research, based on the assessments of more than 1,800 international financial services professionals, revealed that Dublin has lost almost all of its reputational advantage. "Brand Ireland" has been tarnished more than many centres as a result of the financial crisis, the research found.

Dublin's image as a financial centre was particularly negative among Asian survey respondents. Prof Mainelli said there was a perception in China that Ireland had "gone bust". "That's what they see in the headlines," he said.

To improve its position in the index, Dublin must rebuild its reputation by marketing itself as a competitive centre for financial services, in particular insurance and reinsurance, he said.

Presenting the results at a seminar at the Mansion House yesterday, Prof Mainelli suggested that Dublin could regain its top- 10 position in the index if it positioned itself as a niche "mid- shore" or "trusted" centre, and marketed itself as a stable, safe place to put money in the long term.

He warned of the danger of a regulatory knee-jerk reaction, and advised on the importance of engaging with the EU on future regulations.

Also participating in yesterday's seminar was the head of State Street's Irish operation, Willie Slattery. He said that because financial services were heavily regulated, interaction with the Financial Regulator was "key to our prosperity". If the regulator did not have strong technical competence and an ability to review proposals quickly, "we're out of business", he warned. The IFSC could grow, he added, but only if Ireland got its tax and regulatory regimes right.

Originally published by CAROLINE MADDEN.

(c) 2009 Irish Times. Provided by ProQuest LLC. All rights Reserved.

A service of YellowBrix, Inc.